Toyota Body Seiko – Factory Tour
Toyota Body Seiko is a subsidiary of Toyota Auto Body, an integrated automotive parts manufacturer that develops, designs and manufactures a variety of auto seat parts, frames and pressed components. The company is a first-tier supplier to the Toyota Group with five factories in Japan and two overseas.

Corporate Information
- Company: Toyota Body Seiko
- Parent Company: Toyota Auto Body
- Establishment: 1992
- Location: Headquartered in Aichi Prefecture
- Main Business: Automotive parts manufacturing

Toyota Body Seiko – Lean Characteristics
TPS, Just-In-Time, Kanban, Andon Board, Visual Management, Quality Assurance
Toyota Body Seiko Kakamigahara Factory is one of a regularly visited sites on our Lean Japan Tours. The factory manufactures automotive seat rails used for not only the Toyota HiAce, but for many other popular models such as the Rav4.
The shop floor tour will give a comprehensive operator-level look at factory operations and our tour participants will experience the Toyota Production System in action with excellent examples of Just-In-Time delivery, Kanban and Andon board systems at this Toyota Group first-tier supplier.
Other highlights of the factory shop floor visit include simple but effective visual management tools, automated guided vehicles (AGV) and specific examples of inexpensive improvement ideas that have had a considerable effect on productivity.
Quality assurance is a key challenge for this factory due to the structure of its workforce. Most workers are employed from labor hire firms on short-term contracts. However, you will see how this factory has managed this situation to achieve an impressively low defect rate.
The tour group will visit the product reception and delivery staging areas as well as welding and assembly operations, with the tour and discussion led by a former factory manager.



Irvine, California, United States
I attended Shinka Management’s Lean Japan Tour and it was an incredible experience. The content was highly informative and practical, offering deep insights into lean culture and principles and their real-world applications. The organisation of the program was excellent, ensuring a seamless and engaging learning experience. I’d highly recommend this tour to anyone looking to…
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Broughton, Chester, United Kingdom
The tour has been a once in a lifetime experience and a real insight into Japanese Industry and culture. The warm welcome and organisation of the week including travel, hotels, places to eat and all visits were exceptional. The Toyota Group and Isuzu factory tours really demonstrated the Toyota Production System followed up with great…
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Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
This service has added huge value to the Saudi Arabian Government-sponsored Tomoh Industrial SMEs. Thank you Shinka for the effort made to deliver this service in a very professional way.
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Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
The Shinka lean study mission of Japan offers participants an opportunity to see what is possible in undertaking world class manufacturing. The insights that are possible on tours like this can really challenge what you think are the real key success factors for implementation and enhance the chance of success in your own journey.
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Dubai, United Arab Emirates
It was a fasntastic tour from the beginning to the end. It was very well-organised and informative. Sessions were followed with practical training which concentrated more on the ideas that had been explained. The factories visited were chosen in a way that allowed the participants to see a live supply chain work. Big thanks to…
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Buenos Aires, Argentina
My experience on the Lean Japan Tour was much more than expected. I’ve come to realise that there’s much more for me to learn regarding TPS. The program is excellent in terms of the content, but also, and no less important, the personalized attention made me feel like I am a member of the Shinka…
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The Shinka Management Lean Japan Tour is a professional development program run several times annually. The program includes a mix of lean and kaizen seminars, hands-on lean training and visits to several benchmark lean companies. For further information and program dates, see the lean tour overview page.
Tour Inquiries
Interested in joining us in Japan? For additional information prior to registration please fill in the form provided or contact us.
